A possible new celebrity romance made headlines yesterday – Chris Evans and Lily James were seen leaving a private members’ club in London on Saturday and went back to his hotel together afterwards. As I wrote in my post about it, they were clearly not social distancing and since Americans entering England are required to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival, the presumption is that Chris has been there, hanging out with Lily, for at least two weeks if not longer.
That timeline might not work, however, if you consider Chris’s last virtual-public appearance. As a reader called Sara pointed out to me over email, Chris did a SAG-AFTRA interview on June 29 that was published on July 2nd. It’s currently Emmy campaign season and Chris and co-star Michelle Dockery are supporting Defending Jacob. It would appear from the background of his shot that he was still in Massachusetts at the time because it’s the same as when he did his Variety Actors on Actors conversation with Paul Rudd and where he’s been doing all of his interviews during the pandemic. If this did take place at his home in Massachusetts, it means then that he would have still been in the US at least as of June 29.
Important to note though that actors and film crew exemptions from England to bypass quarantine. Per Variety:
“The government said the exemption only applies to cast and crew coming to England – other parts of the U.K. have their own rules – employed on film and television productions that qualify as British, according to British Film Institute classification. Those who are exempted will have to live and work in protected “bubble” environments for two weeks, and will have to follow guidance on managing the risk of COVID-19, as set down by the British Film Commission (see link here).
In a statement, the government said the exemption “recognizes the ability of international productions to isolate cast and crew from the general public, and that individual studios and production companies have developed practical solutions for safe working practices, including rolling out new training programs for screen industry workers filming in studios and on location.”
Those individuals granted exemption will have to carry a letter from the studio responsible for the production. The letter must include their name, date of birth, passport number, U.K. address, production dates and location, contact phone number for the studio, and the certificate number from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to prove that the production has qualified as British.”
It’s possible that Chris is in England to work. And maybe Lily is in his bubble? As many of you now know, adding someone to your bubble, when it’s not work-related, is a move. Bubble-forming can be fraught with drama. I’ve heard of bubble fights. I’ve heard of bubble betrayals that lead to bubble breakups. It’s not always complicated, of course, but it can be very complicated. And it can also be very confusing. On the last episode of What’s Your Drama?, Sasha and I answered a question from someone who was in a bubble with a person she hooked up with shortly after lockdown began and it’s muddled the usual relationship development timeline because obviously if they’re in a bubble it’s a thing – but how serious is the thing if we’re all in this state of… temporary-permanent? Is it less complicated and confusing or more when celebrities like Chris and Lily are involved, with overseas travel etc?
